Jen Tuttle Parsons

Project focus: The Fellow will construct a comprehensive roadmap for preparing scientists to engage in science communication around emerging topics with diverse audiences in a constantly changing information ecosystem.

Jen Tuttle Parsons (she/her) serves as the Civic Science Fellow with the American Physical Society. Her career spans the fields of informal STEM engagement, technology, research, music education, and museum leadership. Jen recently concluded her tenure as Executive Director of the Ohio Valley Museum of Discovery, a hands-on, STEAM-based museum in Appalachian southeast Ohio. She guided the organization through a time of transformation, from a pop-up museum on wheels to a permanent museum home that stands as a regional hub for lifelong learning.

Jen holds a Ph.D. in Instructional Technology from Ohio University and two degrees in music education. She has taught public school at the middle, high school, and collegiate levels. Her work underscores the need for critical partnerships among educational, scientific, and community organizations. Jen’s research, including a focus on LGBTQ+ inclusivity in informal STEM settings, guides her fierce advocacy for making informal STEM learning equitable and accessible to all. She is delighted to work with APS in creating a strategic roadmap to support scientists’ public engagement endeavors.